This Week at ULC
Newsletter | September 16, 2020
SUPPORTING LIBRARIES AND COMMUNITIES IMPACTED BY EXTREME FIRES
Contra Costa County Library Fires
Photo of Contra Costa County’s San Pablo Library
ULC Offers Support to California, Oregon and Washington Communities Impacted by Devastating Fires
Deadly fires and winds continue to threaten communities in the Western United States, causing severe air quality alerts in Washington and other states and “Extreme Red Flag Warnings” for parts of interior southern Oregon and Northern California.

The ULC community stands with libraries and residents being impacted by these catastrophic weather events. We encourage our library colleagues to reach out directly to ULC's staff and peer library leaders if we can be of help.

Click here to learn about ways you can support victims of the fires through various nonprofit organizations that are assisting first responders and helping displaced residents.
NEW ULC LEADERSHIP BRIEF:
DIGITAL EQUITY IN THE AGE OF COVID-19
Informed by the work and expert guidance of ULC’s Digital Equity action team, ULC’s newest Leadership Brief spotlights how the pandemic has both intensified the digital divide and created a window for action by raising the visibility of what it means to be unconnected in our hyper-connected world, especially for our most vulnerable residents. This Leadership Brief offers action strategies, key messages and background information to empower library leaders to take on a more active and intentional role in advancing digital equity.

ULC's action teams continue to meet bi-weekly to work together on developing strategies for libraries to address the pandemic and its impact. Get the latest updates from this work by exploring our action team web pages at urbanlibraries.org.
SUBMIT YOUR 2020 INNOVATIONS TODAY
Innovations Submit Today
Thank you to our ULC members who have already submitted to our 2020 Innovations Initiative! We will accept submissions through October 1 and plan to announce the Top Innovator and Honorable Mention award winners during a virtual event later this fall. For help with your entries, please review the 2020 submission categories and discover tips for the 2020 application process.
ULC would like to recognize and thank Ingram Content Group for their support for this year's Innovations Celebration!
REALM PROJECT UPDATE
Battelle is currently testing a fifth round of items commonly circulated by libraries, with results expected in early October.

The items include:
  • Polyolefin (upholstery)
  • Polyvinyl chloride “vinyl” (upholstery)
  • 100% cotton (upholstery, draperies, toys)
  • Nylon webbing (stanchion belts, bags, ropes)
  • Leather bookbinding

To receive the latest news on this project, please sign up for the REALM email update newsletter. You may also submit questions about the project via this online form.
FACES ON THE FRONT LINE
This week, our "Faces on the Front Line" photo series highlights the great work of staff members from Anne Arundel County Public Library, Los Angeles Public Library, Athens Regional Library System, Carlsbad City Library, Alameda County Library, Mandel Public Library of West Palm Beach, Baltimore County Public Library and Johnson County Public Library. Recognizing the leadership of the individuals featured, we have moved this popular photo series to our Going Forward from the Pandemic Initiative page.

We encourage you to submit any images or stories from your team's work on the front line of COVID-19 to media@urbanlibraries.org.
MEMBER NEWS ROUNDUP
Grand Rapids Public Library Hispanic Heritage Month
Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
Grand Rapids Public Library

Next week, GRPL is partnering with Grandville Avenue Arts & Humanities, Grand Rapids Community College, LINC UP and MSU Extension to celebrate the power of being bilingual and Hispanic. The special storytime event will feature stories read in both Spanish and English. 
Joan R. Johnson
Welcoming a New Director
Milwaukee Public Library

Joan R. Johnson has been named the new director and city librarian for Milwaukee Public Library — the first African American and fourth woman appointed to this position. Johnson, who served as deputy director since 2009, succeeds Paula A. Kiely who retired last month.
Promoting Civic Literacy with Democracy Days
Toledo Lucas County Public Library

Patrons in Toledo can register to vote, obtain an absentee ballot or complete the Census during Democracy Days held at TLCPL locations through the end of this month. Thanks to a collaboration with several local organizations, the library is working hard to keep their communities civically engaged through election season and beyond. 
UPCOMING MEMBER EVENTS
ULC Deputy Directors
Member Group Conference Call
September 16 | 4-5 p.m. ET
ULC Directors
Member Group Conference Call
September 17 | 4-5 p.m. ET
ULC Collections Leaders
Member Group Conference Call
September 17 | 4-4:30 p.m. ET
ULC Communications and Marketing Leaders
Member Group Conference Call
October 7 | Noon-1 p.m. ET
ULC HR Professionals
Member Group Conference Call
October 19 | 1-2 p.m. ET
ULC Education Leaders
Member Group Conference Call
October 20 | 2-3 p.m. ET
NOW IS THE TIME FOR RISK-TAKING & EXPERIMENTATION
Chief Strategy Officer Beth Yoke Pens ULC Blog Post
Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library

Discover how Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library is experimenting to figure out the best ways to serve students in a learning environment that is a mix of in-person and remote learning. Beth Yoke has served as chief strategy officer for the library for the past two years and is currently a member of ULC’s Partnering with Schools action team.
NEW ON THE ULC MEMBER
KNOWLEDGE CENTER
Salt Lake County Library
Rochester Public Library
SOCIAL MEDIA SPOTLIGHT
Richland Library Installation
Richland Library

Two Black Lives Matter-inspired banners by Dogon Krigga and Ija Charles were installed at 
Richland Library’s main location. A committee of community members and library staff picked the pieces to provoke thought, inspire joy and bring hope for the future.

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